Sunday, April 13, 2014

The tiniest antique bonnet!

I've been working so very hard on a new pattern that I've neglected 'The Blog'. Sorry. So today I dove into my drawer of antique bonnets and found this tiny gem.

 

If you look carefully you will see the hand-stitched perfectly spaced pin tucks. Such fine detail! The laces insertions have been whipped to the fabric and the hand-embroidered floral insertion. Can you imagine making that embroidered insertion? It is perfect!


Here is a back view and you can see the little circle which draws in the fabric to shape the bonnet. With all the hand work that has been done this little piece has been applied by very fine machine stitching - the only machine work I could find.


From the inside - almost good enough to wear this side out!! You can see the raw edge of the fabric which has been whipped to the lace and the embroidered insertion. Very neat and precise. The ties are of a single thickness of the bonnet fabric. The edges have been turned twice and a running stitch used to secure the hem. Interesting.... 
Below is a close-up of the embroidered insertion from the back.
The thread carried from motif to motif is an indicator of hand work in most cases.


Here you can also see the back of the ruffle with the tiny lace edging.
Below are detailed shots of the ruffle and the finishing from the right side and the inside.

 
 
 
One quick look at the hand stitched pin tucks - such attention to detail.

 
And lastly here is a close-up of the centre back. Such a neat job and those tucks line up nearly perfectly!
 
 
I hope you enjoyed a look at this stunning, wee bonnet. I just wish I could meet the lady who made it and talk about all those fine details I would love to find out how long it took her to make it. I think we would be hard pressed to create a tiny bonnet, even with all our high tech machines, that would rival this one.
 
So until next time, keep stitching....




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